Mumbai
Mirror: Mumbai: Wednesday, 23 September 2015.
State
information commissioner rules that data under RTI can't be withheld under garb
of 'exclusion list'; ruling will affect Metro projects across country.
In a landmark
order that will have a bearing not just on the operational
Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar (VAG) metro line, but also the planned Metro lines in
Mumbai, as well as the Delhi and Bangalore metro projects, the Maharashtra
state information commissioner has ruled that withholding of crucial data is
illegal.
Despite
coming under the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) Act from April 2015,
Reliance Infra backed Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL), which operates the
VAG line, has maintained a list of exclusions and stonewalled information under
RTI pertaining to contract agreement, work order, complaints filed by citizens,
action taken on complaints filed, public-private partnership, inspection report
by auditor general, and implementation of auditor's report, among others.
Activist
Vihar Durve, whose appeal before the state information commissioner Ratnakar
Gaikwad resulted in this order on September 14, told Mirror: "This is
indeed a landmark order because it will change several dynamics not just for
the Mumbai metro but across the country." Durve, who claims to have been
inspired by Anna Hazare to keep at it, had been forced to fight against the
exclusion list after his first RTI application of February 3, pertaining to how
MMOPL arrived at a particular fare between stations, went unanswered.
"They
(the operator) acted as if the company cost sheet was a national secret. Today
everything has to be revealed. There are no more classified files here,"
Durve said.
The
Maharashtra State Information Commission (SIC) recently passed a landmark order
that is expected to have nationwide ramifications for organisations maintaining
an 'Exclusion List' to deny information to public. Such a list mentions all the
operations details of which the organisation will not provide information under
the RTI Act.
An elated
Durve said that armed with this order, the road is now open for the public to
see just how the first metro service provider arrived on a certain fare figure.
"It will also open the gates to other vital details," he said.
THE
EXCLUSION LIST
· The advice/opinion offered by advocates or experts
engaged by the MMOPL for taking a decision
· Professional fee paid to advocates, experts for appearing
on behalf of the MMOPL or giving expert/legal opinion
· Contract agreements with third party
· Opinion sought from advocates/consultants/other experts
· Any application received for redressal of grievances,
unless some material information has been sought
· Answers to whys, hows and whats unless they exist in
material form
· Names, addresses and qualifications of members of the
tender committee, appraisal committee
· Photocopies of deliberation of tender committee,
appraisal committee on file which have information relating to technical and
financial aspects of third party
· Detailed Project Reports of Metro
· Operation and maintenance manuals
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